Disclaimer: Okay, sorry J.K., Darcel told me that you are married to Murrey. So what?? You own this, you�re married, you have a son�hmph! You have everything!
Chapter Sixteen: In Which History Repeats Itself
�So tell me,� asked Neville, as he positioned himself between the shouting Ravenclaws in the Quidditch stands, �why are we here again?�
�Because Ginny did a very terrible thing to Malfoy yesterday,� Colin explained as he squeezed over to let Ginny sit beside him, �when Malfoy told her to ask him if he loved her, she chickened out and ran away. And now she feels guilty and wants to get rid of her guilt by watching Malfoy in his game.�
�I see,� said Neville nodding, �makes perfect sense.�
�He couldn�t answer my question!� Ginny wailed dejectedly as she wrung her hands in despair, �I asked him if he liked Pansy or not and he said he can�t answer that!�
�Maybe he�s forced to like her or something,� said Colin amidst the loud cheering of the Ravenclaws as their team scored, �you know, maybe his sinister father is paying him to like Parkinson. I mean, who would dump a hideous girl if it�ll cost you thousands of galleons?�
�Oh get off it, Colin,� Neville piped in, not believing a word Colin said, �that only happens in soap-operas. Maybe he�s going steady with Pansy�after all, it was Pansy who said in Hogwarts Monthly that she is Malfoy�s girlfriend.�
�Pansy�s capable of many lies,� Colin argued mulishly. �She was the one who told you that socks wake up at night and tries to smother you dead�any information that pops out of her foul mouth is very untrue.�
�I�m still scared of socks,� Neville said, shuddering at the memory, �every night, I convince Harry to keep them buried beneath his clothes.�
�Wow, look at Ravenclaw go!� Ginny exclaimed in awe. �Their two Chasers are positioned at each end of each of the goal posts. Look at that third Chaser�you see her? Parvati�s twin? Padma Patil? Look at her�she�s right in the middle of the field, way below the others. Okay, watch that Ravenclaw Chaser on the Slytherin goal post�her name�s Lisa Turpin by the way�see how she perfectly steals the Quaffle away from Montague? Then she goes and throws it towards Padma in the centre�hey look! Warrington�s going to steal that Quaffle away from her�oh shoot! Padma passes the Quaffle to Stephen Cornfoot�right there beside their goal post�oh no! Ravenclaw scores again!�
�You should apply for the commentator, Gin,� Neville suggested, �honestly, you do better than Seamus up there.�
�Okay�what just happened in there?� Seamus cried out in confusion, �Sorry Professor�never going to happen again Professor��
�Look at those two sly Chaser Beaters a little above Padma,� said Ginny, pointing towards the field.
�You mean those two across from each other?� asked Neville, as his eyes squinted harder to see more properly.
�Yes�them�those two throwing the Bludger to each other,� Ginny answered. �You know what they�re doing? They�re creating a diversion. By throwing the Bludger towards each other, they sort of form an imaginary line that makes all the Slytherin Chasers hesitate to cross, in fear of being hit by that Bludger.�
�What are they creating a diversion for?� Colin asked curiously.
�Because Padma�s right below them!� Ginny replied, apparently frustrated. �Obviously, they�re protecting Padma because every time the Slytherins try to shoot at their post, Lisa Turpin, who�s blocking their post, steals the Quaffle at the last second. Then she passes the Quaffle to Padma, who�s right below the two beaters which means she�s right below that invisible line that the Bludger makes and��
�This protects her from any Slytherin Chaser�making the Quaffle almost impossible to steal! And then from below, she throws the Quaffle to Stephen Cornfoot�who�s right in front of their goal post�making them score�in fact, they scored again! � Colin finished Ginny�s sentence excitedly, suddenly taking interest in the game as he leaned forward in his seat, trying to see closer. �Those Ravenclaws are smart!�
�And Ravenclaw scores�30 to 0!� Seamus Finnigan roared in the microphone, determined to gain Professor McGonagall�s trust once more. �Those Ravenclaws are playing like there�s no tomorrow�and technically, there is no tomorrow. For the team that loses in this match loses their chance in playing in the finals!�
Ginny watched nervously as she saw Trent and Montague position themselves in front of Slytherin�s goal posts.
What are they up to now? Ginny thought nervously, her heart pounding a hundred miles a second.
Warrington, who was the third best player in the team after Malfoy and Trent, was waiting patiently in front of Ravenclaw�s goal posts, just before the line of the Scoring Area. Just when Stephen Cornfoot was about to score, Warrington swiftly stole the Quaffle from him. Unexpected to the staring audience, the two Slytherin Beaters, Bole and Derrick, positioned themselves on each side of Warrington, just before he crossed the two Ravenclaw Beaters, who were currently still working on their invisible shield. When the Bludger was speeding towards them, Derrick slyly hit the Bludger with all of his might, making the hard ball speed back towards the clueless Ravenclaw. With two beaters on each of his side, Warrington threw the Quaffle towards Trent, the star Chaser, who, with a quick hit of his broom, scored ten for the Slytherin team.
�Cool!� Neville screamed, oblivious to the fact that he was sitting with the Ravenclaws and that he was the only one applauding the opposing team. �Those Slytherins are bloody brilliant!�
�And you�ll be all bloody if you don�t shut up,� Su Li, a Ravenclaw, who was sitting beside Neville, growled menacingly, eyeing Neville from head to foot.
�Sorry,� Neville mumbled, embarrassed, as he settled back in his seat.
�What�s the score?� asked Colin, nudging Ginny with his elbow.
�30 to 10, I think,� Ginny answered reluctantly, waiting for Seamus Finnigan�s announcement.
�And the Slytherin team scores! 30 to 10 people�in favour of Ravenclaw!� Seamus then whispered something between the words of �those Slytherins are lucky enough to even score� which made Professor McGonagall absolutely furious with him. When Seamus covered the microphone with his hand as the Professor shouted in rage at him, Ginny, Colin and Neville were sure that Seamus would have yet again, another detention from the moody Professor.
The Slytherins then did their attack again, until the score totalled to 30 to 50�in favour of the Slytherins. The Ravenclaw were all turning in the colour of red, and at the other side of the field, the Slytherins were all having a jovial dancing going on. Ginny, Colin and Neville, who were sitting on the Ravenclaw stand, were all glowing amidst the angry crowd.
But the victory party was only short lived.
Seamus Finnigan was commentating when it happened.
�And again, the Slytherin Chasers move in for the attack! Warrington is speeding with the Quaffle under his arm, accompanied by Bole and Derrick, the Slytherin Chasers. Oh no�what�s this? The Bludger swings away from Bole�s bat�it�s heading right towards Montague�Montague�move out of the way! Derrick rushes to the rescue�he swings�he hits�the Bludger takes a different curve�oh no!�
Ginny gasped as the Bludger, which was to move supposedly towards the right, towards Bole�suddenly took a steeper curve�right in the direction of Warrington. Just as Warrington threw the Quaffle to Trent, who immediately scored, the Bludger hit Warrington directly in the face, producing a deafening crack that made the whole field silent.
Bole immediately caught Warrington with his strong arms before the poor Chaser fully went plummeting down the ground. Madam Hooch came quickly to Warrington�s aid, signalling for a time-out.
Seamus was busy announcing to everyone what had just happened, �Wow! This is the third Chaser killed by the Bludger! First it was Eleanor Branstone from the Hufflepuff team, and now, it hits Ted Warrington! This Bludger has rage!�
Ginny looked up to see Draco Malfoy, who seemed absolutely furious, his face set in a scowl. When she glanced at the Ravenclaw captain, Roger Davies, she could plainly see that his face looked as if Christmas had hit him earlier than expected.
�Those Slytherins would be easier to defeat now,� Ginny heard the Ravenclaw beside her whisper to his friend, �now that their second star Chaser is out of the game. Everyone knows that Montague has the talent of a wet mop when it comes to Quidditch.�
�Yesterday, Malfoy was going on about how he wanted the Quidditch cup,� his friend whispered back. �Looks like he was too preoccupied with singing, that he forgot to train his Beaters into hitting the Bludger towards the opposing team�not in his own team!�
The two Ravenclaws started guffawing but hastily stopped when they saw Ginny glaring daggers at them. Ginny felt nauseous. Without Warrington, who would score for the Slytherins? Malfoy can�t lose now�not now when he�s just inches into winning the cup! And besides, after Malfoy absolutely embarrassed himself in the whole hallway after the whole singing card event, Ginny still had the guts to dump him and because of this, Ginny was feeling even guiltier than usual.
The laughter of the Ravenclaws stiffening her resolve, Ginny ran towards the field as she signalled Malfoy to call a time-out again.
*.*
�WHAT?� Ginny covered her ears as Trent bellowed with all his might his surprise. �You�re missing two incredible points here, Weasley,� Trent said as he waved two accusing fingers under her nose. �First, you don�t know how to play Quidditch, and second, you�re in Gryffindor!�
�You�re missing two incredible points too, Trent,� Derrick interrupted, looking quite excited with the whole idea. �First, Weasley was the one who made us score in the last game with Hufflepuff and second, the school rules said that any injured player in the team can�t be replaced within anyone from inside the team�s house. And since the girl�s not from Slytherin��
�They can�t argue with it since the rules never said anything about not allowing players from outside the house of the team to substitute for an injured player!� Ginny finished the sentence for Derrick, as she sought support from the team.
Bole, who was staring at the blood of Warrington that stained his robes, showed no emotion, as well as Tracey Bale. Derrick was definitely on her side, and it was obvious that Trent wasn�t. Apparently, the decision depended on someone else.
As if on cue, Trent, Derrick and Ginny all turned to look at Malfoy, who looked as if his scowl was going on permanent on his face. His eyes never left Ginny�s, as though asking through his eyes why she was doing this.
Ginny knew deep inside that she, herself, didn�t know why she was doing this. She wasn�t a hard core Slytherin fan, and she definitely didn�t want the Slytherins to win the House cup this year. Perhaps she was doing this because she felt guilty. Guilty because she ran away from him, in fear of hearing what the answer is. Fear of hearing from Malfoy�s own mouth that he didn�t love her after all.
Or perhaps she was doing this because deep inside her, she knew that she did want to see Malfoy win the House cup. To see, just for once, his smile of victory as he realizes that he finally won over Harry.
Maybe Neville was right.
Maybe she did love Draco Malfoy.
And, as if hearing her secret thoughts, Malfoy suddenly said, �Call Madam Hooch here. Let�s see if Weasley�s plan works.�
*.*
The arrival of Madam Hooch was the most suspenseful event of Ginny�s life. Trent was still looking incensed, Derrick was still looking hopeful, and Malfoy was still staring Ginny down.
When Madam Hooch finally entered the Slytherin team�s little circle, she knew right then and there from the vigorous aura that something was up.
�What is it?� she asked sternly.
�As the captain of the Slytherin team, I feel that it is my duty to speak for the rest of the team,� Malfoy announced authoritatively. �Due to the injury of our star Chaser, Warrington, we decided that a substitute player is very much needed for our team. It seems fair enough to have three Chasers for each team.�
�The reason why Eleanor Branstone wasn�t replaced in the last game, Mr. Malfoy,� explained Madam Hooch, �is because it is stated on the Charter of Hogwarts Quidditch, Section A, part 4, that no substitute player within the House of the team will play in the absence of an absent or injured player. So as you can see��
�Yes precisely, Madam Hooch,� Malfoy interrupted rudely, �but as you can see, you said so yourself that no substitute player within the House of the team can play. We worked that odd out. Warrington�s replacement is not, in fact, from the Slytherin house.�
�I�m replacing Warrington,� Ginny announced, more determined than ever.
It was entertaining to see Madam Hooch�s face slowly turn white, then purple and then finally blue. All the while, she was speechless. Ginny felt that Madam Hooch needed a little bit of persuasion, just as a couple of people had been giving her the past few days. All of these words had led her to stand here today, changed her, and made her learn. Colin told her to follow your heart; because that�s the only time you�re sure you�re right. Malfoy told her that something good always comes out of your mistakes. Professor Sinistra said that one voice makes all the difference. And Madam Hooch�Madam Hooch had said�
�You told me to look at the world in a different angle, Madam,� Ginny said, suddenly remembering the sole reason why she teamed up with the Slytherins in the first place. �You told me that if something�s worth it, even though it�s impossible, everyone would understand. I want to play Quidditch with the Slytherins, Madam Hooch, because by all means, the golden ball is inside the flask.�
Malfoy seemed confused. He had no clue of what they were talking about. No one had a clue of what they were talking about. Only Ginny and the professor knew.
After Ginny had uttered her words, Madam Hooch cocked her head to one side and smiled.
�You know, Miss Weasley, I saw only one person who had the same point of view as yours,� said Madam Hooch kindly, �and that�s how I learned that lesson. She was about your age, and she was also in Gryffindor. It was the finals that day. Gryffindor vs. Slytherin�as usual. Us Ravenclaws were squeezed into the stands where the Gryffindors were, cheering the Gryffindors on.
�Then suddenly, a Slytherin Chaser was hit by a Bludger. The next thing we knew was that, she stood up from the crowd, and made her way to the field and said the exact same thing to the Quidditch referee.�
�What was her name?� Ginny asked, although she already knew the answer.
�Lily Evans,� Madam Hooch replied.
�And what did the Quidditch referee do?�
�This,� and with that, Madam Hooch gave a slight kick and her broom flew towards the stands where all the professors were.
They were having quite a heated argument for a couple of minutes, although for the Slytherin team, it felt like a whole hour. The audience were having a confused racket. They didn�t know what was going on. Fear of the unknown especially killed Roger Davies, who was turning into a dangerous shade of crimson, while Cho Chang continuously patted his back, in a benevolent attempt to make him feel better.
Finally, after what seemed like a decade, Professor McGonagall whispered something in Seamus� ear that made him nod.
�Ladies and Gentlemen,� Seamus Finnigan announced, his voice radiating throughout the suddenly quiet field, �the professors had reached a decision.�
A/N: Ha! I absolutely love cliff-hangers!
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